Biography

French architect. He became court architect to Stanis³aw Leszczyñski, the last duke of Lorraine and father-in-law to the French king. Héré de Corny almost single-handedly designed all the important buildings and monuments in Nancy, he is best known for laying out the town centre of Nancy, a principal example of urban design in the 18th century.

Little is known of Héré's training. Stanis³aw, the former king of Poland and father-in-law to Louis XV, was made duke of Lorraine in the 1730s. He commissioned Héré to unite the medieval and Renaissance sections of Nancy, separated at that time by a moat and the remnants of fortifications. Héré's resulting work, begun in 1752, consists of three areas: the Place Royale (now the Place Stanislas), the Place de la Carrière, and the Place du Gouvernement. These interconnected areas form a series of squares and promenades lined with buildings or ringed by colonnades. The squares are tastefully embellished with lines of trees and with sculptures and fountains. The layout created pleasant vistas, improved traffic patterns, and provided the basis for the future rational development of the city.

In creating this masterful project in a provincial capital and on a limited budget, Héré established himself on the level of accomplishment of the most notable city planners of his time. Among his other works, almost all at Nancy, are the church of Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours (1738-41) and the Hostel of Royal Missions, erected for the Jesuits between 1741 and 1743.